Hurricane Lee (Wafflemaster135)
Hurricane Lee was the 14th storm, 12th named storm and 3rd major hurricane of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season. Lee killed 49 people and caused an estimated $25 billion in damage, making it the 7th costliest in U.S. history. Meteorological history Hurricane Lee began as a tropical invest on October 22nd northeast of Hispaniola and started moving west toward Cuba. The National Hurricane Center gave the system a 70% chance of developing in the next 48 hours. The next day, on October 24th, the system became Tropical Depression 14 about 75 miles north of the Dominican Republic. Tropical Depression 14 continued moving west at 10 miles per hour toward the Eastern tip of Cuba. Early on October 25th, the storm made landfall as a tropical storm in Eastern Cuba. Tropical Storm Lee caused landslides and flooding that killed 4 people. Lee was downgraded to a tropical depression after crossing over the island. Lee kept moving northwest through the Yucatan Channel, strengthening into a category 4 hurricane 250 miles off the coast of Texas. Hurricane Lee made landfall 20 miles north of Corpus Christi, Texas at 9:13 P.M. October 31st, 2017. Because of the time the storm made landfall, Hurricane Lee is known as "The Halloween Hurricane". The storm killed 19 people and caused $5 billion in and around Corpus Christi. The remnants of Hurricane Lee turned north toward San Antonio, dumping 16 inches of rain on the area in 24 hours. San Antonio's flood control system was overwhelmed by the amount of water entering the system, which led to the flooding of the downtown area. The flooding in South Texas killed 26, while 7 are still missing. Lee finally dissipated over Central Texas on November 2nd. In all, the storm caused an estimated $20 billion dollars to South and Central Texas. Preparations and impact Cuba After forming in the North Atlantic, Lee made landfall as a tropical storm in Eastern Cuba on October 26th, 2017. As the storm passed over the island, it weakened to a tropical depression. However, as a slow moving system, Lee dumped 12 inches of rain in the Sierra Maestra region of Southeast Cuba. This caused flash flooding and landslides that killed 4 people. The cities of Holguin and Manzanillo suffered minor wind damage. In all, Lee caused an estimated $10 million in damage in Cuba. Cayman Islands Lee strengthened back into a tropical storm after passing over Cuba. On October 27th, Lee crossed the strait between Grand Cayman and Little Cayman. Owen Roberts International Airport on Grand Cayman and Charles Kirkconnell Airport on Cayman Brac were closed for 2 days in preparation for the storm. Even though the storm didn't make landfall on the islands, the storm surge caused minor damage to a few buildings and piers along the eastern coast of Grand Cayman. Mexico Tropical Storm Lee quickly strengthened to a Category 2 hurricane over the next 24 hours, prompting precautionary measures by the Mexican government. Models from the National Hurricane Center had several tracks showing Lee making landfall along the Yucatan Peninsula, with a couple showing potential landfall around Cancun and Cozumel. As the area was affected significantly by Hurricane Franklin just a few months prior, many of the hotels and resorts in the area were still closed for repairs. A voluntary evacuation was put into effect for coastal areas in Quintana Roo and Yucatan 36 hours before predicted landfall. Luckily, Hurricane Lee made a turn to the north through the Yucatan Channel, causing only minimal impact in Mexico. Only slight wind damage was reported in Cancun, and the highest storm surge measured in the area was only 3 feet on Isla Mujeres. United States Texas Category:2017 Atlantic Hurricane season Category:Category 4 Atlantic hurricanes